Enterprise Blog

The Blue Marble Security Enterprise (BMSE) is a multidisciplinary student organization focused on securing the future through the thoughtful use of technology. The team combines a rich educational experience in engineering design, project management, and original product development.

Just like any other enterprise, Blue Marble welcomes students from all majors to get involved and join a project team. Four electrical engineering team members and five mechanical engineering team members shared their insights and experiences. Jessica Dimartino explains why they got involved in Blue Marble, “I wanted to be part of an enterprise that had a variety of subjects/disciplines to explore.”

The enterprise currently has seven projects: General Motors Cost Effective Pickpoint, General Motors Digital Twin, Michigan Tech Library High Density Mobile Shelving Unit, Navy AMCP, Navy Submersible Smart Tow Cable, Oshkosh Baja LCTV Suspension Design, and UP Community Energy. These projects require diverse knowledge and skills, from combining mechanical and electrical systems to balancing technical data with various information release procedures. As 2024 grad and electrical engineering major Ian Wyngarden explained, “this is a good enterprise for someone unsure what they like to work with as we have a project for everyone.”

Library shelving project

Library shelving project

Jared Roebuck, a fall 2022 grad and mechanical engineering major, has spent three semesters on the MTU Library High Density Mobile Shelving Unit project. This project aims to design and implement a safer moving bookshelf system that is easier to maintain and less expensive for the basement level of the MTU Library. “It [the MTU Library project] is cool because the final product will be something I can see in use.” Roebuck joined the enterprise after having Dr. Archer as an instructor and is the project manager, a project engineer, and the enterprise’s VP of Operations.

Also on the Michigan Tech Library High Density Mobile Shelving Unit Project is Mykenzie Brown, an electrical engineering major, and spring 2023 grad. Brown joined the enterprise because they knew an older member and describes Blue Marble as a team that “strives to get projects done and students are willing to work to the best of their ability on projects.” So far, they have enjoyed working with the motor controller and microcontroller in their project.

Quin Bray, an electrical engineering major and 2023 grad is the UP Community Energy project manager. This project aims to create a model that optimizes renewable energy for households based on various factors. “I’ve learned about small scale renewable energy generation,” said Bray. “I find that cool because I think it would be really cool if I could set up my own house at some point to be totally off the grid.”

Fellow UP Community Energy Project teammate and project document chief Joel Wyngarden talked about how they have enjoyed collaborating with their teammates in this project. Wyndgarden is a 2024 electrical engineering major and emphasized that “every student is there [in BMSE] because they want to be and want to learn and produce results. The group strives to have students create new memories and skills.”

UP Community Energy (Solar Installation, source: WNMU)

Oshkosh TAK-4 Independent Suspension System (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oshkosh_TAK-4_Independent_Suspension_System

Ian Wyngarden, the enterprise’s financial manager, is also on the UP Community Energy Project and shared their inspiring experience with the project’s sponsor, “I have worked with one sponsor who has helped inspire my interest in renewable energy. Our meetings are relatively relaxed and almost just like a conversation with a focus that we can pull from as needed for the project.”

Kyle Wiersma, a spring 2022 grad and mechanical engineering major, is the project manager for the Oshkosh Baja LCTV Suspension Design Project. This project is a research, design, manufacture, testing, and analysis project based around the Oshkosh Defense Light Concept Test Vehicle (LCTV), a prototype for a new Army vehicle. Wiersma got involved in BSME because of this project and finds it to include “beneficial real-world engineering problems you are investigating and solving.”

“Our enterprise is composed of students excited to work on the leading edge of technology in our field,” said Jack Jones, a mechanical engineering major, and 2022 grad. Jones is the document chief of the Oshkosh project and has felt a significant impact from the sponsor regarding their growth as an engineer. “I’m doing real-world testing related to whole body vibration and ride quality, which is relevant in the ME field.”

Mark Sergio, a summer 2022 grad and mechanical engineering major, and Jessica Dimartino, a spring 2023 grad and mechanical engineering major, are also on the Oshkosh project and are both interested in working for Defense companies such as Oshkosh. “It’s great to be working directly with the sponsor,” said Sergio. “It not only gets your foot in the door with companies that I’d consider working for, but it also allows you to do work that actually serves a purpose.” Dimartino describes the Oshkosh project as “the coolest project I have worked on.” They go on to explain why “Having an opportunity to continue work that has been long in the making and understanding new aspects of an industry I’d like to be a part of is amazing.”

“The best part of enterprise is meeting and working with new people you normally wouldn’t have met,” said Bray. “The most challenging is figuring out how to dedicate time each week to getting your assigned tasks done.”

The Blue Marble Security Enterprise has developed a culture that fosters high professional standards, creativity, productivity, and a burning desire to learn. As a result, their graduates are ready for the world’s most challenging careers.

Meet the Advisor:

In addition to being interim chair and principal lecturer in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Dr. Glen Archer is also the faculty advisor for Blue Marble. Dr. Archer received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (BSEE) from Texas Tech University, a Masters in Information Systems Management from Webster University, and brings nearly 30 years of experience as a US Air Force Officer to Michigan Tech.

His students describe him as understanding, knowledgeable, and always willing to help because he genuinely cares. Joel Wyngarden shares how Dr. Archer always has the students’ backs to work through challenging situations, whether technical, professional, or interpersonal. Mark Sergio remarks about their appreciation of Archer’s time to Blue Marble, “It’s amazing how much time he is willing/able to give considering how many students he advises.”

The 2022 SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge was held last month at the World Championship Derby Complex in Eagle River, Wisconsin. The ‘challenge’ for university teams participating in this Collegiate Design Series event is to develop cleaner, quieter, comfortable, and cost-effective snowmobiles. Competition sleds are evaluated on acceleration, handling, endurance, noise, emissions, and yes – cold start capability! In addition, team designs are evaluated on the technical merits and on value-added innovations, marketability, and profitability.

This year, Michigan Tech’s Clean Snowmobile Enterprise entered sleds in gasoline (SI) and diesel (CI) categories. Overall, the team placed 8th (out of 12) in SI and 4th (out of 6) in CI. The team also received three awards: Best SI Design, Best SI Value Benefit, and Best CI Value Benefit.

When asked to reflect on this year’s event, Team President Katy Pioch stated:  “Even though our sleds didn’t perform as expected, we persevered and never gave up. This is what real engineering and teamwork is all about, working together to solve problems in unique ways, and I have to say I’m proud of how our team pushed through the difficulties of competition this year with optimism and even excitement.”

Kole Augustine, 2022-23 Electrical Team Leader, added: “Having been a part of two Clean Snowmobile competitions prior, I can say that having been back in-person has really shown what this event is all about. All the innovative ideas and thoughts that have gone into each individual snowmobile is outstanding. No two vehicles are alike which makes for a very interesting and fun competition. It was great to interact with all the other teams, sponsors, and judges to share stories about their season and see what kind comments they could give to us leading into the 2022 competition year. Even though Michigan Tech did not place as well as we hoped, the 2022 SAE Clean Snow event was a fun and great learning experience.”

Students around a snowmobile.

Student posing for a group photo.

Student on a snowmobile.

After a safe return back to Houghton, the team provided a heartfelt thank you to all Advanced Motorsports sponsors for their continued support of hands-on learning through Michigan Tech’s Enterprise Program. And, while their 2022 competition season is officially over, the team has been using the final weeks of the school year to bring back lessons learned and get a head start on 2023. Congratulations Clean Snowmobile Enterprise!

By Chris Morgan, Assistant Director of Educational Partnerships

A special thank you to the supporters of the Michigan Tech Enterprise Program! This year Enterprise and Senior Design Teams are tackling inspiring and engaging projects and are solving problems more important than ever before.

Students enrolled in Enterprise right now are solving leading-edge technology problems, including energy-saving appliances, automotive autonomy and electrification, intelligent grid systems, medical devices, heavy machinery, department of defense, and even emerging bicycle technology. Students even have an opportunity to get involved in our community with projects that support local non-profits like Little Brother’s, Friends of the Elderly.

Our Consumer Products Manufacturing Enterprise (CPM) is once again working to create practical prototypes of the “Shared Air” system that can help mitigate and eliminate bacteria and viruses in buildings and enclosed spaces. Long-time Enterprise supporter General Motors are now sponsoring the project.

The ITOxygen Enterprise team is diving headfirst into Machine Learning and AI technology with two relevant projects studying and analyzing big data sets of video and imaging for medical and civil engineering customers. Fascinating implementation of new skillsets from the team and new hardware and servers are being put to good use!

Enterprise teams need your support in developing projects and financial support for students to gain educational exposure to real-world engineering, design, business, and problem-solving. As you may know, the Enterprise Program relies on external partnerships to make real-world project curriculum a reality. If you are interested in supporting Michigan Tech students’ education through real-world, hands-on projects, please contact me – Chris Morgan – cjmorgan@mtu.edu. There are many ways to support the teams, including general donation, project sponsorships, Advanced Motorsports Team Support, and Gift in Kind Donation. For more information, please see the Enterprise Sponsorship Website. (Link: https://www.mtu.edu/enterprise/giving/)

If you are already participating as a partner with the Michigan Tech Enterprise Program, thank you! Please don’t hesitate to let us know if you have any experience highlights, questions, or concerns.

By Rick Berkey, Professor of Practice and Director, The Enterprise Program

Welcome to the Fall 2021 issue of the Enterprise Program Newsletter. And welcome to early November in Houghton — as you can see in this photo, Mt. Ripley may get a head start on the ski season if this keeps up!

With our Fall 2021 semester well underway, we have plenty of great news and highlights to share in this issue. Despite the global pandemic, external sponsorship and project support remains strong. Similarly, Spring 2021 Enterprise enrollment was the highest since 2008, with combined team and module course enrollments of 901 students! While external support and enrollment metrics only tell part of the story, both are signals of the value of Enterprise — for students, program partners, and employers of Enterprise graduates. Looking further at enrollment, we see growth across campus, consistent with our efforts to expand and provide experiential learning opportunities. Fun fact: while engineering majors represent ~75% of Enterprise enrollment, students from 24 unique majors outside of engineering now participate in Enterprise. Teams like Hotforest, CinOptic, and the newly launched H-STEM Enterprise (featured in this issue) are helping fuel this growth. And, what’s even more encouraging is that our enterprises are becoming more interdisciplinary: the “average” enterprise enrolls 36 students from six unique majors!

Along with many new student faces, we have seven new faculty serving as advisors or co-advisors. Please join me in welcoming Nick Hendrickson (MMET), David Labyak (MMET), Tim Havens (CS), Joe Azzarello (Chem Eng), Robert Handler (Chem Eng), Steven Elmer (KIP), and Shane Oberloier (ECE) to our Enterprise community. As usual, we also have several team highlights to share since our summer newsletter, so without further delay, please read on and enjoy! 

— Go Huskies!

Aramco Americas, a multiple-year partner of Michigan Technological University, has awarded the Enterprise Program a $40,000 grant to support STEM education at MTU.

The funds, which demonstrate Aramco America’s ongoing commitment to the Enterprise program, will specifically promote STEM education in the areas of advanced mobility technology, vehicle performance, and reducing emissions. The grant will directly support Advanced Motorsports (AMS) Enterprise Team projects this year, including Formula SAE, Blizzard Baja, Clean Snowmobile, and Supermileage Systems Enterprise.

“This is an outstanding program and one that Aramco Americas has had the pleasure of supporting as part of our commitment to STEM education and advancing transportation technologies,” said David Cleary.  Cleary is responsible for Aramco Research Center in SE Michigan/Detroit area focused on engines and fuels technology.  

Tech’s one-of-a-kind Enterprise program focuses on student-driven multidisciplinary teams that work like companies on real-world client projects. Whether the deliverable is an innovative product, a pioneering solution, or a much-needed service, the hallmark of Enterprise program is experiential training that equips students with the skills they need to succeed. 

“We’re extremely excited and grateful for this contribution” said Chris Morgan, assistant director for educational partnerships. “The Michigan Tech Advanced Motorsports teams in these collegiate competitions are performing at the top levels across the nation. This  gift will help them continue to push the limits of what these competitions are all about.”

This support positions Aramco Americas as a Creating the Future AMS Sponsor.  Each AMS team is an interdisciplinary student team whose goal is to develop a complete vehicle—from concept, through prototyping and testing and on to final build and ‘delivery’ at their respective competitions. While each team operates as a separate Enterprise entity, the AMS umbrella enables our teams to leverage the diverse talent, economies of scale, and synergistic opportunities afforded the group as a whole. The hands-on learning environment allows AMS members to develop critical business, engineering, communication, and leadership skills for a successful transition into the workforce.

For more information on the Enterprise Program, or Aramco America’s partnership with Michigan Tech, please contact enterprise@mtu.edu.